The Language of the Church

The language of religion can be found in many contexts: religious newspapers and
magazines, religious radio and TV programmes (Radio 4s Thought for the Day), and
local publicity material promoting church events. It has both written and spoken forms.
Function
No matter the religion, these texts perform the main function of upholding spiritual
belief. Even is they have a slightly different function, the variety, as a whole, seeks to
persuade people and o act in a certain moral way (conative function). Religious texts like
the Bible also have an expressive function, since they are partly concerned with an
expression of feelings.
Religious language prescribes a specific attitude to life.
Features
In the Christian religion, prayers are a special form of polite command or requests
addressed to God; liturgies are chants, thanksgivings, hymns and psalms; sermons are
moral statements which aim to dictate a certain kind of behavior through stories or
examples; and theological texts are discursive documents with a moral purpose written
by biblical scholars, theologians or the clergy they may contain justifications for certain
beliefs and lifestyles, spiritual guidelines or explanations of religious teachings.
Manner
The manner is usually formal and has little similarity with informal spoken or written
language. In written texts, there are n contractions for auxiliaries or negatives and spoken
religious language is not marked by the hesitancy and normal non-fluency features
associated with informal speech. Being a traditional form of language, it often retains
archaic linguistic features which add to the formality of the medium. Its main use is in
public group contexts, so it must be still accessible to the intended audience. Formulaic
utterances like Glory be to God are common, contributing to its formal tone.
Lexis
The lexis is subject specific, with nouns like disciples and parables and verbs like pray and
forgive. In the narrative of the AVi, the vocabulary is archaic, with many words which
have no contemporary synonym, others which have been replaced with a modern
synonym, and many words linked directly to a specific person, place or action.
There are many formal phrases and idioms: In the beginning and Let there be light are
taken from the written language of the Bible, while Dearly beloved brethren, we are
gathered here together and Let us pray are spoken. The language is often formulaic,
with openings like we beseech thee and closes like Amen. Antithesis is common: heaven
and hell, sin and forgiveness, death and resurrection.
Nominal groups, particularly in prayers, tend to be long. Most nouns are modified by at
least one modifier and post-modification and noun phrases in apposition are common.
Adjectives are often modified by adverbs.
The naming of the godhead is important since it is the central concept of any religion.
More than half of the determiners used refer to God, and are possessives. Because of the

abstract spiritual nature of religion, many of the nouns are non-count: heaven,
compassion, salvation, etc.
Grammar
The grammar of traditional church language often resembles older forms of English,
particularly in the AV and the BCP ii. The third person singular verbs are inflected with the
suffixes (e)th and (e)st: creepeth, mayest and doth; some verbs still have older strong
forms: sware for swore, shewed for showed, and spake for spoke. The use of the
unstressed auxiliary do to indicate past time is archaic: I did eat.
The present tense is often used in the BCP, while the simple past is common in the AV.
The mood is rarely interrogative, but often declarative. Imperatives are common. The
subjunctive is more common in the written language of the Church.
Modal verbs are also common, implying contrasts in speaker attitudes.
In traditional versions, pronouns are distinctive because of their archaic forms: ye and
thee are widely used.
The first person plural usually replaces the first person singular, reflecting the public,
group nature of worship.
Sentences in AV are often basically simple, but the structure is ultimately complex.
It is not unusual to see an inversion of the subject and verb.
Prayers have a distinctive sentence structure:
-

They being with a vocative;

They contain an imperative verb followed by an object and its dependent clauses;

They conclude with the formulaic Amen.

Metaphorical language
Metaphor adds an extra layer of meaning to the stories that provide the spiritual
philosophy of Christianity.
Symbolism is central to the interpretation of the language of the Church. Thus Adam and
Eve represent humanity, the serpent the evil, the apple temptation.
Rhetoric is important since the purpose of this language is to persuade. Techniques like
antithesis are central, since the purpose is to contrast good and evil.

Authorized Version of the Bible

ii

Book of Common Prayer